


Dawn

by Minatu



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Demons, Erumike Week, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-02
Updated: 2014-03-02
Packaged: 2018-01-14 06:01:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1255534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Minatu/pseuds/Minatu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Magic is such a curious thing, and for a curious young boy, it is definitely worth reading up on at the very least. Perhaps he might find something... unexpected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> "Oh there is an empty place in my bones that calls out for something unknown."
> 
> ("The Nightmare Before Christmas", Jack Skellington)

"Erwin," a thin, strict faced woman said, "Your grandfather is dead. Your father and I will be attending the funeral this weekend. Would you like to go?" She met her son's eyes, the thin lined frown on her face never lifting. Her hair was tied tight against her skull. She was wearing a simple black dress and a thin string of pearls around her neck. Erwin thought for a long moment. He didn't particularly want to go to the old grump's funeral. He and the old man never got along anyway, but his mother was giving him this expectant look. He figured he'd have to go despite his own feelings.

Just then, a sharply dressed man with salt and pepper hair descended the stairs, coming to stand beside Erwin's mother. He gave a sigh, adjusting his tie.

"No one else is going to have their kids there, Martha," Erwin's father said, addressing the thin woman carefully. She gave her husband a glance of disapproval. Then, curtly, she looked to Erwin.

"You're old enough to make your own decisions," she said pointedly. Erwin slid his hands into his jeans, giving his mother a disdainful look.

"I don't want to," he told her simply and turned to disappear up the stairs. Martha let out a little huff of disapproval, while Evan, Erwin's father, chuckled softly in amusement. Evan then touched Martha's back with the palm of his hand, carefully leading her out of the house while Martha complained shrilly on how impolite their son was, but Evan was quick to respond that he was only a teenager still, and that Martha should let him have a little bit of rope.

Erwin watched them go from the window in his room. He didn't really care whether they were home or not. Looking about his spotless, plain room, he found himself with little to do as he had already dressed and cleaned and dusted everything in the room. He always felt the safest there in his room, except for when his father came to speak to him on any strange matters. At those times, his father would carelessly pick something up and never place it back where it belonged. This often served to drive Erwin insane.

One particular such book had an odd, magical circle drawn on it. Erwin did have a bit of an interest in the supernatural. He lifted that book now in his hand, carefully caressing the edges of the pages as he opened the book. He carefully read over the passage on summoning a demon. Of course, he honestly believed that such things were untrue, but interesting nonetheless. He cringed slightly when he cut his finger on one of the pages. Much to his disbelief and horror, he had not moved fast enough to keep from sullying the book's perfectly pristine pages with his blood. The droplets placed directly in one of the circles drawn. He racked his brain for some solution, but couldn't think of a single one when rather suddenly, a fancily dressed man was sitting on his book, making it too heavy to even continue holding. The man had messy brown hair and a sort of shadow of a light brown beard. His brown eyes were almost black even.

"Irvin! You've gotten younger! How did you manage that one?" the man asked, taking Erwin's face into his hands and observing it carefully, much to Erwin's horror. Who knew where this demon's hands had been!?

"Let go. My name isn't  _Irvin_ ," Erwin said, his lips forming a tight frown. Surprised, the man let go and blushed slightly.

"I... I see," he responded, "I apologise, my name is Mike Zacharias." He bowed swiftly before Erwin, then adjusted his brilliantly coloured vest with a frown. He didn't look terribly comfortable in his attire. He met Erwin's dark, serious eyes with a lightly curious expression.

"What purpose did you summon me for...?" Mike asked carefully. He seemed to be irritated, but perhaps that was due to the fact that it was not who he had hoped to be meeting. Erwin stared at Mike for a long time. He hadn't even realised that he was even  _summoning_  this demon, so how was he supposed to know the purpose for his being there? Quickly, Erwin picked up his book off of the floor. His blood and the circle were both gone from the page entirely.

"There was no purpose..." Erwin said slowly. It seemed that this completely broke Mike's composed nature. He slumped over slightly, his face contouring into multiple different expressions of exasperation, horror and utter contempt until his hand lightly found a place on his forehead, shielding his eyes from sight.

"Seriously. Summoned by an ameteur from Irvin's blood line. Great, just  _great_ ," Mike muttered to himself. Erwin's eyebrow twitched slightly.

"What are you doing?" Erwin asked as if he didn't hear a word of what Mike said, "Taking a dump?" He purposefully phrased the question with the intention of completely throwing the obviously high and mighty demon that stood before him. Very abruptly, Mike straightened, giving Erwin a look of utter shock.

"Does it look I'm doing something like that!?" he gasped, pink colouring his cheeks. Erwin felt a grin tug at his lips, causing them to twitch, but he did not succumb to such a temptation. Trying to regain his constitution, Mike opened his lips once more to ask, "What is your name?"

"Erwin."

"Last name?"

"Doesn't matter," Erwin deadpanned. The colour drained from Mike's face as he glanced away from Erwini.  _He's exactly like Irvin..._  Mike crossed his arms over his chest quickly, staring into Erwin's eyes. Mike, however, was preparing himself mentally for the fact that  _Erwin_  was also not the same as Irvin, and things would not go in the same way that they had with Irvin... Mike couldn't deny that he missed the man that Erwin looked so much like.

"You will get three wishes," Mike began, "And then I will return to Hell." Erwin stared at Mike in silence again before finally coming up with some sort of answer.

"I don't want anything," Erwin finally said. Mike felt like he had the worst of luck.

"Come on, you have to want  _something_ ," he complained, his voice raising into a slight whine. Erwin turned to Mike with shock. That sound had sent shivers through him. Instead of opening his mouth to say anything, he simply turned back around, busying himself with some miscellaneous item that he had suddenly found great interest in. It appeared that he was not in the mood to deal with Mike in the slightest. This, of course, was found undesirable by the demon, and knowing quite well that Erwin disliked being touched, Mike knew very well how to bother him. He set his hand on Erwin's shoulder looking over at the item that Erwin was looking at. A sharp hiss escaped Erwin's tight lips.

"I can make you the the smartest, the strongest, or the wealthiest man in the world," Mike said in a low voice. Erwin's eyebrow twitched again. There was an odd, curling emotion in his gut. He quickly swiped Mike's hand off of his shoulder, but Mike leaned in, sniffing carefully at Erwin. Erwin's blue eyes widened with shock. Mike could tell the difference by then,  _their smell_.

"I don't want any of that," Erwin said, crossing his arms over his chest and giving Mike a look of finality. Mike merely smiled.

"So then, am I dismissed?" Mike asked with a slight flourish. Erwin frowned slightly, curiosity suddenly taking hold of him. He hadn't asked who that  _Irvin_  or whatever guy was. He wasn't sure if he particularly even wanted to know. Erwin opened his mouth, leaving it open as he thought upon his actions and what he desired to do. It seemed that Mike wished to leave, but would not without Erwin's consent. He was sure that had something to do with their contract...

"No. I want you to tell me who Irvin is," Erwin said with finality and all the pomp of a young prince. Mike sighed, sitting down in one of the stuffed chairs of the room. Erwin remained standing, which would have been considered impolite in most polite societies, or perhaps Mike was the one that was impolite. However, Erwin was the one that was dressed in the more relaxed manner.

"Is that what you  _wish_?" Mike asked with a light intonation. How curious it was of Erwin to desire such a simple thing. Mike was sure that he could have learned this information by asking his grandfather or something.

"Sure," Erwin responded, fully aware of what Mike meant when he said wish. He was not an idiot. Erwin waited for Mike to answer, tapping his left foot silently. Mike observed his impatient habit with a slight smirk. Yet another similarity between him and Irvin. It was the simplest things that were similar between the two that really made his day, although they brought his mind back to the times in which he had spent with Irvin, which were vaguely painful to some degree, as Irvin was not a particularly kind guy. In fact, he was relatively brutish.

"Irvin Smith," Mike began, "Was most likely your great-grandfather, or something..." He was using very informal speech, like he wasn't trying to concern himself too much with the details of Irvin himself, but instead, just the simple facts that Erwin could probably find out on his own. He grimaced slightly.

"Don't give me that," Erwin said, "I can figure that out on my own. What was your relationship with him?" Mike flinched slightly at the prodding question. He disliked it, really. It was something that just wasn't very easily defined. Mike had a sort of  _l'amour sans retour_  that he hated talking about, and in short, it was Irvin. Irvin Smith. This was also why he was so hesitant with the young Erwin with the two being so alike, it seemed that he might just have a repeat of that detestable experience.

"I was his...  _servant_  for a time," Mike responded, "We didn't have much of a relationship at all, just as he wanted." Erwin seemed a bit surprised by this answer, though it was the truth...  _sadly._  Mike blamed this on his eager manner of greeting Erwin earlier. He was a bit surprised, if nothing else. He had hoped it was Irvin calling him back.

"Is that really it?" Erwin pressed. Mike frowned slightly, annoyed by how observant Erwin was. He didn't seem to care who he bothered with his questions either, that was not unlike Irvin, but oftentimes, Irvin showed no care for Mike. In a way, this was a welcomed change for Mike, however, these were not the sort of questions that Mike was interested in answering.

"Yes," Mike asserted with a thin frown. Erwin seemed to ignore Mike's discomfort, beginning to pace back and forth as he thought aloud before Mike. Apparently he did not seem to think that he had anything to hide before Mike, and perhaps that was true.

"It does not seem to be that way however. I feel that you are hiding something," Erwin concluded loudly, spinning on his heel as he came to face Mike, "So tell me, what is it?" Mike frowned further, since he was able to further do so.

"Is it a  _wish_?" Mike hissed through his teeth. Erwin stopped pacing for a moment, bringing his fingers to his chin as he thought this over. He didn't particularly want to waste all of his "wishes" on mere questions. He turned promptly back to Mike as he had had his back to him.

"Can I wish for more?" he asked strategically. Mike smiled slightly,  _at last_ , an easier topic for him. Perhaps they had finally moved away from the topic. Mike would have preferred that.

"No," he answered simply. Erwin sighed then, thinking carefully. Mike wondered what exactly was on his mind then as he wasn't speaking aloud then as he had before. With a slight huff and a straightening of his shoulders, Erwin seemed to come to a decision of sorts.

"You have to answer all of my questions, truthfully," Erwin said. Though he seemed to waste the first favour of his, he was most definitely making use of his second. Mike couldn't deny him the desire, so he merely nodded his head, acknowledging that that had indeed been his wish. It was then, at that point in effect.

"What are you hiding from me about Irvin?" Erwin said, a sly smile drifting across his handsome features. It was not a smile all that unlike one that Irvin often had as a smart man of businessing affairs. It seemed Erwin also had this trait, unluckily for Mike. However, he did only have one more wish that could be granted, and it seemed that his time with the young Erwin would be very short.

"I had feelings for him," Mike choked out. Erwin raised an eyebrow, but from the slight bulge from his eyelids and jump of his shoulders, he had obviously understood exactly what Mike had meant by those words, and the demon was, well, relatively embarrassed. He had never admitted it out loud before, and quite frankly, he never wanted to. Whatever possessed Erwin to summon him, he was hoping it would be over soon.

Erwin's expression slowly altered as he approached Mike, a softened expression caressed his features. He lifted Mike's chin to have the demon to look at him, and it shocked Mike to his very core. Mike had been feeling very bitter about the whole experience, and suddenly, Erwin was using a tender expression that made his breath catch.

"I know how you feel," Erwin said with half a frown and added, "Look people in the eyes when they speak to you." He then turned away, leaving Mike enamoured by the strange boy. Sure, he and Irvin were similar, but the differences were what really counted. Irvin had not been a very tidy man, but he could see that Erwin was quite the opposite. Once Mike had let go of the two being carbon copies, he saw the differences more. The way that Erwin carried himself was even different. Mike couldn't help it, but he liked that the two were not the same.

.

It seemed that Erwin was taking his time with his final wish. Mike was with Erwin for the most part of Erwin's days. Currently, Erwin was sitting beneath a tree, reading a lengthy novel. It seemed the blonde boy enjoyed his reading and had found his second wish to still be useful, as many of his questions could be answered by Mike. However, Mike certainly did not know everything, and Erwin's lack of interest in making his final wish only made Mike nervous. Despite this, they spent a lot of time in silence.

"Can you seal a contract with a demon with a kiss?" Erwin asked suddenly, looking up from his book. Mike jumped at the sound of the boy's voice before answering.

"Yes," Mike responded. He could have elaborated on how few people sealed contracts with demons because of this rule, but also because the human was usually bound to the demon for the rest of their mortal lives. Particularly weak humans would even lose their souls to the demon. It took Mike a moment to realise that Erwin had not asked the question because he was reading a book on supernatural lore, but because the thought had occurred to him.

"I want you to kiss me," Erwin said after a long moment, in which Mike had been deep in thought. However, he was abruptly ripped out of thought by Erwin's words.

"What?!" Mike said, looking at Erwin in surprise. Erwin glared over the top of his book.

"You heard me. It's my final wish," Erwin responded. Mike looked away from Erwin before finally moving over to Erwin, placing his hands on either side of Erwin.

"Move your book then," Mike said. Erwin didn't move a single muscle, so Mike reached up and pushed the book down before leaning forward to place his lips on Erwin's. It was a chaste thing and short, but it was also soft and warm. However, Erwin did not allow Mike to pull away completely. The blonde teen pulled Mike back to him in a sloppier kiss. Mike quickly returned the kiss, a little surprised still that Erwin even wanted to kiss him.

Erwin's fingers stroked Mike's curled horns after the two had pulled away. Erwin was left panting for air. Mike was barely winded, and he smiled sadly at Erwin. It seemed that their contract had ended though it felt like it had only just begun.

"Good bye, Erwin," Mike said before completely disappearing into thin air. Erwin's fingers dropped into his lap. Tears rolled down his cheeks, and he stared silently at his book. He would have to try to summon Erwin again... He only hoped that it worked that way because Mike had stolen his fist kiss.


	2. Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silence is a strangely attractive thing. Avoidance is eye catching, and those russet eyes were something that Erwin never learned to look away from.  
> Mike knew that nostalgic scent, somewhere deep within his memory. He knew Erwin from somewhere before his current life. A deep attraction that had settled in him was one that he could not escape.

Those dark eyes of Mike's were arresting. They always pulled Erwin's attention from whatever he had been focused on only moments before. To Erwin, the russet eyes had a certain look about them that just called upon his attention. It did not matter that Mike was his  _kouhai_  in the workplace. Whenever a new lady joined the workplace, she was quick to complain about Mike's conduct to Erwin, but Erwin never did a single thing about Mike's strange habit. It only made Erwin notice the other man more. He had a habit of sniffing others. To Erwin, Mike seemed a little more like a dog than anything else with that attribute of his.

Mike was also a good employee, and it wasn't in Erwin to reprimand a worker for queer behaviour. Instead, he was more concerned with productivity, and Mike was more, often than not, the employee of the month. There was really no reason to confront him about his little  _habit_. It was also true that Mike had never even done such to Erwin, so perhaps it was a sort of evaluation method.

 _Still_ , it sort of bothered Erwin that Mike had not bothered with him. Was there something wrong with him that repelled Mike? He did not know the answer to this question, but perhaps Erwin should count his blessing because it appeared to be a rather disturbing experience for young men as well.

.

From the moment Mike began working at this particular business, he found himself stopped by a particularly familiar scent. When he targetted who it was coming from, he found that he did not know this man. He also later learned that the man was his boss, all the more reason for him to let it alone. However, there was something very particular about that scent that unsettled him. It wasn't that it made him uncomfortable or anything, it was the fact that he desired to be  _nearer_  to it. He could not explain it in any other way.

Mike also became aware of how conscious Erwin was of his presence. His boss often catching his eyes at the oddest of moments. Mike was not sure how he was supposed to feel about it. However, he came about to the discovery that Erwin's scent was something particularly precious to him. In a way, he believed it to be the scent he had been looking for for all of his life, and that was something so impossibly strange to him, that he was not sure how to react. He had found Erwin, but how much would the man be able to understand?

So Mike came about developing a new habit of sorts, one where he simply avoided his boss, simply for his own well being. True, it was a bit of a strange approach to the feeling, but in a strange way, it worked quite well. Erwin's eyes would search for Mike in the mornings, oftentimes, their eyes would meet when Mike first stepped into the building, and the tiniest of smiles would appear on Mike's face. He was a quiet man. Erwin was the one that was more likely to be the one to approach Mike.

.

The fact that Erwin never came close to Mike bothered him. He wondered if there was something particularly wrong with him in this manner, as he could not really help having such thoughts. Erwin often found when he went to grab more coffee, if Mike was in the room, Mike would step out with a slight nod to Erwin. It really bothered Erwin.

Erwin was the type of guy that wanted to have a little self-pride, mainly when it came to work. How Mike often acted before him, well, it hurt his pride. Therefore, although taking quite a while, Erwin decided he was going to speak to Mike. He knew that Mike often stayed after he left, often being the last to leave work. Erwin often assumed this was because Mike was covering for the other employees that often did not finish all of their work before leaving. Erwin liked that particular trait of Mike's. It seemed like Mike was looking after the other employees.

Erwin watched as every person slowly stood up to leave, often yawning widely. Some of the guys patted Mike on the back as they left. Despite Mike's bad first impression on many of the employees, he seemed to have earned all of their respect. Erwin himself stood, stifling a low yawn and walked over to Mike. He sat down in the seat beside him, nonchalantly bringing up conversation.

"Do you always work this late on a Friday?" Erwin asked. Mike jumped in surprise. Sure he had noticed Erwin sit down, but the deep, resonant voice still shocked him. He wasn't sure of what he expected when Erwin decided to join him, but this was far from his expectations.

"Yes," Mike answered stiffly in his quiet voice. Erwin was a little surprised. For such a tall guy, Mike was very quiet. Even his voice was soft. Erwin spared Mike a glance. He couldn't deny, however, that Mike was very handsome. The five o'clock shadow look obviously worked for him, and for many women, quiet guys often had a mysterious allure to them.

"Don't you have a girlfriend or someone to get home to?" Erwin asked. He leaned back slightly in his chair, causing it to creak loudly. It was then that Erwin realised just how quiet it became after everyone else had gone home. Mike gave Erwin an odd look, one that Erwin wasn't particularly familiar with, especially on Mike's face.

"Not really..." Mike responded with a slight shrug. Erwin sighed. He was already avoiding asking the question he planned on asking, it seemed. With a deep breath, he resolved to say it.

"I've noticed that you avoid me," it was a simple couple of words, and he saw rather quickly that Mike had turned red at this. This made Erwin himself a bit embarrassed himself. He had not expected Mike to blush in such a cute way, but he had.

"I haven't really," Mike said softly, trying to avoid the topic entirely with a simple, noncommittal phrase. Erwin did not take the bait.

"So it's just a coincidence that we're never caught in the same room?" Erwin asked pointedly. Mike didn't say anything for a long moment. He wasn't sure of how to reply, really. He wasn't much of a talker anyways. With a slight note of embarrassment, he realised that his answers to Erwin's questions had all been very similar.

"I don't know," Mike responded quickly. A surprised laugh slipped from Erwin's lips. He ran a hand over his perfectly set blond hair.

"I'm sure you don't," Erwin was a little irritated with Mike's answer. He stood abruptly, about to leave, when Mike stood, placing himself directly in Erwin's way. Mike found Erwin's scent to be irresistible when he was close to the man. Erwin looked up at Mike with a slight frown on his face. Then Mike leaned down, touching his nose to Erwin's neck, and Erwin froze. He could feel Mike's breath. The sensation sent shivers down Erwin's spine.

Erwin closed his eyes let out a soft, pained breath. Mike jumped in response, immediately pulling away from Erwin. Erwin's eyes snapped open, and he stared at Mike for a long time. Mike didn't say a word. He simply turned and left the office as quickly as he could. Erwin watched after him, unable to utter a word.

.

Monday was strange for Erwin. He woke with Mike's name on his lips, and he wasn't sure why. Stretching, Erwin began preparing for a normal day at work. However, everything was going wrong from step one. He burnt himself pouring coffee into his mug and ended up dropping the mug, which shattered on the floor and left several scratches in the wood.

The burn wasn't bad, but it did leave his skin tender for the rest of the day, and he was slowed down by it. Also, he was in a mood because his early morning coffee was lost on his floor. So he was particularly ill suited for the early morning meeting that he had completely forgotten about. The entire meeting was a disaster itself. Two people were terribly late, one of which was the one giving the presentation. Another person did not even show up, later, it was found out that he was ill at the time.

It was almost lunch time when Erwin finally sat down in his office with his first cup of coffee. Obviously he looked bad, since Petra came in and refilled his cup before he had even begun to stand and go to get another. Petra also fixed his tie, telling him that he could have just taken the morning off. He looked like he needed it. Erwin merely smiled at Petra. She was a sweet girl. Without even realising it, he had fallen asleep. When he woke up, the only two in the office were him and Mike. The glow of Mike's computer illuminated the man's face. He looked a little pale. Erwin noticed that he wasn't wearing a jacket, and soon found the jacket in question on himself.

It was a little embarrassing that Mike was looking out for him, and he wondered when Mike had stepped into his office and laid the jacket over him. Slowly, Erwin stood, holding the jacket on his arm as he stepped out of his office. He walked over to where Mike was sitting and sat down. Today he didn't say a word, merely watched Mike finish his work. When Mike finally did, he looked over at Erwin and shook his shoulder to wake him back up.

"Bad day?" Mike asked with a slight smile. Erwin, being half awake nodded his head and with a hoarse voice replied, "Awful." Mike stood up, stretching a little. His bones popped in multiple places.

"Shouldn't sleep here," Mike told Erwin. Erwin yawned and stood. He felt exhausted despite falling asleep multiple times that day. He would probably have to make up a lot of work in the morning. Erwin and Mike walked out together, a silence settling between the two of them.

"Would you come drink with me?" Erwin asked Mike suddenly. Mike looked at Erwin in surprise.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Mike replied. Erwin sighed, patting Mike on the back.

"I guess I'm on my own then." Mike sighed softly at Erwin's words. The man was obviously not feeling well. Mike decided that he couldn't allow Erwin to be alone that night, and reluctantly agreed to drink with him. The two ended up Erwin's apartment. After quite a few drinks, Erwin was definitely out of it, and through a very strange course of events the sober Mike ended up with the very drunk Erwin's lips on his own.

For Mike, that was a sort of end all rational thought. Barely moments later, Mike was kissing Erwin back with more fire and passion than Erwin could muster up himself.

"Mi-mike," Erwin panted, gripping Mike's back tightly. At this moment, Mike froze. Upon realising what was happening, he picked Erwin up and took him into his room. He tried to lay the man down, but Erwin wouldn't let go of him. Eventually Mike pried Erwin off of him, and left.

It had been a strange night, and not at all one Mike would speak of anytime soon. He reached up, lightly touching his lips. Erwin's taste still lingered there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't know how to end it... or make the romance work. For some reason this just ended up with them really being friends and having an awkward, sloppy make out while Erwin was drunk. 
> 
> I might write more on this one.

**Author's Note:**

> Uhh... There's probably not a lot of Erumike fans out there, but here's my contribution to the Erumike week! It's, of course, for the "First Time" prompt. There's a prompt for the next few days, and if you're curious, I've listed them below:
> 
> March 1st: First Time  
> 2nd: Scent  
> 3rd: Complicity/Loyalty  
> 4th: Trainee Days  
> 5th: Home  
> 6th: Borrowed clothes/items  
> 7th: Old Bonds  
> 8th: Historical AU


End file.
